Indiana mayor charged with paying for sex with man

BATESVILLE, Ind. – The 60-year-old mayor of a small southeastern Indiana city has been charged with patronizing a male prostitute, while the man he is alleged to have had sex with is accused of failing to disclose his HIV status and attempting to blackmail the dignitary.

Richard Fledderman, the three-term mayor of Batesville, paid Randy Wigle-Stevens for sex in June, state police spokesman Sgt. Stephen Wheeles said in a statement Tuesday.

Wigle-Stevens, 42, did not tell Fledderman that he has HIV before they had sex and later threatened to go public with details of their encounter unless the mayor paid him extra money, Wheeles said.

The statement does not disclose the amount of money that passed hands nor how much money was additionally demanded by Wigle-Stevens in return for his silence. The HIV status of the mayor has not been disclosed.

Fledderman was arrested on the misdemeanor charge Tuesday, and the same day, Wigle-Stevens was charged with a felony count of failure to disclose dangerous communicable disease status and misdemeanor counts of prostitution and intimidation.

The Associated Press couldn't reach Fledderman for comment Wednesday. His home phone rang unanswered and he didn't immediately respond to an email or a phone message left at his office in Batesville, 45 miles west of Cincinnati.

No court date has been scheduled for Fledderman. Wigle-Stevens, of Indianapolis, was scheduled to appear in court Wednesday.

The Associated Press could not immediately find contact details for Wigle-Stevens.

Court records do not indicate if either man has hired an attorney.

On his website, the mayor describes Batesville as a "city committed to faith, family, education and a strong economy." It is home to some 7,000 residents. He was elected to three four-year terms, but was defeated in the May Democratic primary by Elmer "Mike" Vonderheid.